Advice on Being a Boss

Getting to the C-suite isn't always as easy as it seems -- being a boss can be trying in new and challenging ways. Whether you need some help getting to be a boss, or now you're a boss and need advice on things like delegating and managing subordinates -- we've got you covered.

Hunting for the best resources for new managers? Whether you’ve been recently promoted to management status or are hoping to get to a supervisor level in the near future, there are many good resources for new managers that are worth checking out, including blogs, videos, books, and podcasts. We’ve rounded up some of our favorites (as … Read More about The Best Resources for New Managers

Happy Administrative Professionals’ Day! What are you getting for your administrative professional today? In the past we’ve taken polls about the best administrative professionals’ day gifts like cash, flowers, and gifts like jewelry — and we’ve shared stories of our amazing assistants, as well as talked about what’s the best things we’ve delegated to him … Read More about Administrative Professionals’ Day – Open Thread

What are your best tips for a new mid-level manager for how to delegate to subordinates, readers? We’ve had a lot of conversations about how to be a boss, whether you should aim to be liked or respected as a boss, how to delegate work to your assistant, and we’ve also rounded up general reading … Read More about How to Delegate to Subordinates

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How do you keep track of different task items at work, readers? What are your best tips for how to keep track of work to-dos? Reader E wonders… I would love a post on how people keep track of work to-dos. Do people write down their assignments on their calendars, keep a paper to do … Read More about How to Keep Track of Work To-Dos

Managing people is hard. And managing people as a woman brings its own complications and considerations. Management and leadership training specifically designed for women can help, but if traditional in-person training isn’t an option for you, there’s plenty of online women’s management training out there, and that’s what Reader K is looking for. She asks: Do … Read More about The Best Online Women’s Management Training

PSA: Administrative Professionals’ Day is April 24, 2019 — what are you getting your assistant? In the past, we’ve taken polls on administrative professionals’ day gifts before, talked about how and what to delegate to your assistant, and swapped stories of amazing assistants — our roundup of gifts for your assistant (or how to buy jewelry for your assistant) … Read More about What to Get Your Assistant for Administrative Professionals’ Day

Have you ever wished you could offload some of your life to someone else, whether it’s household chores, online research, or other drudgery, but have been unsure how to start? We recently got a reader question wondering how to use a personal assistant (and how to find a good personal assistant!), so let’s discuss. Here’s the question … Read More about How to Use a Personal Assistant

We’ve talked about the chatty boss before, but Reader N has a slightly different question: how to deal when your assistant talks too much? Reader N wonders what she can say to discourage her chatty assistant: What are some ways to end a conversation with people at work that work for you? I have a … Read More about Help! My Assistant Talks Too Much

How would you define “executive presence,” particularly for women? Have you worked to build your executive presence? What are your best executive presence tips? Here are some qualities of women with executive presence that Corporette readers have mentioned during conversations that have taken place in the comments: having a “cool, calm, and commanding” presence being a skilled public … Read More about Executive Presence for Women Leaders

2019 Update: Administrative Professionals’ Day is April 24, 2019. You can check out our most recent thread on what we’re getting for our assistants on Administrative Professionals’ Day here. Do you socialize with your assistant or secretary? Do you consider him or her to be among your work friends? Or do you keep your relationship with … Read More about Should Your Work Friends Include Your Assistant?

Ladies: let’s talk about the art of delegating work to your secretary, assistant, or another third party. More and more I feel like knowing how to delegate is key to success in work and life — you can’t micromanage everything. Besides, if you bill by the hour, remember that your client doesn’t want to pay, say, $500 … Read More about How to Delegate: How to Start Delegating Work To Your Assistant

What should you do when you’re stuck with a bad assistant, secretary or subordinate — and your assistant doesn’t assist? When is just time to switch assistants, or even fire the person? Reader K wonders: We are a small (12 people) conservative professional investment firm serving high net worth clients. I recently moved from front office … Read More about The Bad Assistant: When To Switch, When to Fire